Developed through a 2018 Our Town grant by the National Endowment for the Arts, SMALL TOWN * BIG ART is a creative placemaking collaboration of County of Maui + Hale Hōʻikeʻike at the Bailey House Museum/ Maui Historical Society + Maui Public Art Corps that aims to develop a public arts district focused on the distinctive sense of place, history and culture of Wailuku, Hawaiʻi. Monthly art installations such as plays, murals, sculptures, storytelling events and more are created with community input that align with ‘ōlelo from Mary Kawena Pukui's ‘Ōlelo No‘eau: Hawaiian Proverbs and Poetical Sayings. Each artwork is spearheaded by professional artists that have submitted project applications exhibiting exceptional quality, style, experience in creating communal or public art and significance to Wailuku.
The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded a new 2022 + 2023 Grants for Arts Projects grant to this collective to sustain and develop place-based, culturally rooted public art collaborations in Wailuku; design and implement public art activities in up to three new Maui County neighborhoods; and deliver a public art master plan for the County of Maui.
What was successful for Wailuku Town's SMALL TOWN * BIG ART program might look different for another neighborhood, (and each neighborhood will have a new name for its respective public art program!), but the foundation will be the same: people that are willing to share their feedback, places where the artwork can live, and stories about the history + culture of the neighborhood.
We will be exercising a three-pronged approach to identifying small towns throughout the County to expand this work:
If you feel that there is a particular area of Maui County where this work would make an impact, we want to hear from you in this survey.
The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded a new 2022 + 2023 Grants for Arts Projects grant to this collective to sustain and develop place-based, culturally rooted public art collaborations in Wailuku; design and implement public art activities in up to three new Maui County neighborhoods; and deliver a public art master plan for the County of Maui.
What was successful for Wailuku Town's SMALL TOWN * BIG ART program might look different for another neighborhood, (and each neighborhood will have a new name for its respective public art program!), but the foundation will be the same: people that are willing to share their feedback, places where the artwork can live, and stories about the history + culture of the neighborhood.
We will be exercising a three-pronged approach to identifying small towns throughout the County to expand this work:
- A public survey to help clarify who is participating, where we are invited and how public art can fit into the neighborhood landscape (performing, visual or experiential)
- Evaluation of Maui communities' capacity to advance local economic, physical, and/or social outcomes through participatory public art projects
- Access and availability of Maui Historical Society archives in relation to the places nominated/ identified
If you feel that there is a particular area of Maui County where this work would make an impact, we want to hear from you in this survey.
Once a new neighborhood has been identified, our process looks like this:
We look forward to working with you!
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